At the Finnish line: Omni United unveils 2 tires

IVALO, Finland—It was the perfect setting to introduce two tires to the European market.

Private brand owner Omni United Pvt. Ltd. utilized the world-renown UTAC test track in Ivalo to launch its latest offerings: The Radar Dimax All-Weather and the Radar Dimax Winter tire.

A group of around 30—which included European and U.S. tire dealers, select media and Omni United staff—got a first-hand look at the tires, as well as several test laps comparing the products against competitors on a UTAC track, during the Mission North dealer event, held March 18-21 in Ivalo.

The tires were designed by Omni United—led by Olli Seppala, vice president, global head of research and development—and automotive designers Giorgetto and Fabrizio Giugiaro.

The tires will be available in Europe for the 2024-25 winter season. They will be released in the U.S. at a later date.

The Radar Dimax All-Weather tire will be available later this year, while the Radar Dimax Winter tire will be available in North America for the 2025-26 winter season.

The products, Omni said, offer premium performance at less than half the cost of comparable tires manufactured by the world's top tire makers.

"We are really punching above our weight," GS Sareen, founder, CEO and president of Omini United, told Tire Business.

"So what excites me most is that we are now able to build a product which can truly compete at the highest level in terms of performance. And we are not breaking the consumers' bank. It it is still going to be very competitively priced."

Independent third-party testing showed that both tires performed at the same level or better—depending on the particular attribute—as Tier 1 products, according to Omni.

"Looking at the results, it is quite safe to say that they're all quite equal," Seppala said. "So, they are all in the premium segment, and there are no huge differences.

"This is what we want to achieve: Same level or better performance than our premium competitors."

The Dimax All-Weather product features a triple-edged pattern design that Seppala said provides outstanding mechanical grip on snow, while performing well on wet and dry roads. The tire is made with a blue silica company that grips wet roads, is durable and resists aging

"In all of our new products, we want to create a set of features and innovations—five or six really tangible innovations—that provide extra value for the products and that you can sell to your customers very easily," Seppala told dealers.

The DimaxAll-Season, he said, was designed "to create the best possible snow performance compared combined with wet and dry performance, and that's that's really the difficult part of the product, when you have to create a dynamic performance up to 30 degrees Celsius temperatures in difficult conditions."

He said the triple edge pattern also features a sawtooth design in the center and the shoulders, with longitudinal grooves, providing "excellent resistance to tire aging."

The Dimax All-Weather will be available in 40 sizes, fitting rim diameters from 14 to 18 inches, both for passenger and CUVs.

Meanwhile, the Dimax Winter tire features a pattern of double crystal 3D sipes that the company said maximizes grip on snow, slush and water, as well as provides stability on dry and wet roads.

It is made with the inari silica compound that helps deliver excellent wet grip, low rolling resistance, and high durability, even in harsh conditions, according to Omni United.

The winter product will be available 41 sizes, fitting passenger cars, CUVs and SUVs with rim diameters from 14 to 20 inches.

Other features in both tires include:

• Aqueduct grooves, or smooth and shiny channels that help evacuate water and slush from the tread, reducing the risk of aquaplaning, and enhancing safety;
• Connected support technology, embedded within the tread pattern, that provides support to the tread blocks from shoulder to shoulder, ensuring tire integrity, precise steering and safety;
• The Circle of Treadlife marker, embedded in the tire, which indicates remaining tread depth; and
• A smooth, velvet sidewall design that feature ultra-low protrusions to improve air drag and make it easier to clean.

Each tire is compatible for electric vehicles.

Sareen told the dealers that making a tire isn't "rocket science," but most premium tires come at a premium price point.

"Average consumers don't know what brand they have on their vehicle," he said.

"It's only the retailer who tells the consumer, in most cases, as to what he should use. So if we can give the retailer a little extra margin and give the consumer a better price, everybody's happy ... and the brand creates a new position for itself in the market."